THE government is investigating the source of a fire outbreak that occurred at Lake Oil Group depot on Wednesday night in Kigamboni District, Dar es Salaam.
The probe team to be formed by the Commissioner General of Fire and Rescue brigade CGF Thobias Andengenye will comprise experts from various sectors within the petroleum industry.
The fire destroyed the plant’s pumping centre, not the fuel tanks as it was rumored and circulated in the social media.
Speaking at the scene on Thursday, Kigamboni District Commissioner (DC) Ms Sarah Msafiri said that the inferno was fully put under control by a special team from Fire and Rescue Brigade team that was alerted to ensure it did not raze the entire plant.
“It wasn’t an easy job to contain the fire, special thanks goes to all players, who responded immediately at the time when the incident occurred, that solidarity should be maintained for the greater interest of our country,” she said.
Expounding, she said that the fire was contained jointly by task forces from Fire and Rescue Brigade, Airport, Port of Dar es Salaam, and Police force as well as private companies tasked to provide security in the area.
However, Ms Msafiri asked the team to accomplish the investigations on time, while appealing to stakeholders to cooperate during the investigation(s).
“The probe team is expected to accomplish the assignment as soon as possible for the public to know the cause of the fire, and extent of the damage it caused to the company,” she said.
On his part, the Temeke Regional Fire Officer, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Fire (SACF) Elia Kakwembe said that the fire was somehow technical to contain, because it was accompanied by ‘leakages’ observed in one of the valves.
“After we realized that, one of our officers in the rescue team volunteered to enter in the chamber to fix and tighten the valve, a move that made it easier for the fire to be contained. And that was around mid-night,” he noted.
In response, the DC said that the officer who bravely fixed and tightened the valve got first aid and currently recovering in hospital.
She identified the officer as Wilson Mwageni, describing him as a hero, who risked his life to save the company and express national interest, saying: “Otherwise the whole compound could have been in danger of catching fire, if it could not be contained on time.”
On their part, the Lake Oil management said they were yet to establish the extent of the damage, but paving ways for the investigations.
The company’s Head of Compliance, Security and Safety Mr Stephen Mtemi, asked the government and the probe team to finish their investigations on time, to enable them start renovations on the damaged parts.
“We are thankful for the support that we got from the government and other private companies during the incident… the extent of the damage is yet to be known,” he added.
